LEUCANIA STRAMINBA. 29 



body ; the skin was remarkably smooth, the segmental 

 divisions being scarcely indicated — chiefly, in fact, by 

 fine wrinkles forming themselves when the larva bent 

 itself round in the graceful postures it assumed, when 

 actively engaged in feeding. 



The ground colour of the back and sides was 

 brownish-ochreous, but, with the exception of a stripe 

 on either side the back, and another again lower down, 

 this was thickly covered with minute, wavy, linear, 

 greyish freckles ; the dorsal line dark grey, sometimes 

 blackish-grey, having a fine central pale thread ; the 

 subdorsal line similar to the dorsal, but rather paler, 

 both in the central thread and in its lines of grey 

 edging ; it was followed by the second stripe of the 

 ground colour, then another pale line with dark edges, 

 precisely similar to the subdorsal, though rather pale 

 ochreous in tint ; below this was a broad stripe of 

 the freckled ground colour, most strongly freckled 

 along its upper and lower edges, and so little freckled 

 along its middle region that sometimes a line of the 

 plain ground colour could be seen there ; the spiracles 

 were along the lower freckled edge, whitish-grey, 

 faintly outlined with black ; the pale ochreous sub- 

 spiracular stripe was still paler at its edges, the belly 

 and legs being of the same colour, but a trifle deeper 

 in tint ; the tips of the ventral prolegs were dark 

 brown ; the head was brownish-ochreous, brown at the 

 mouth and shining, as was also the upper surface of 

 the second segment. 



I have distinguished all these markings as well as I 

 could, but in truth, the whole surface is so much of 

 the same depth and colouring, especially on the back 

 and sides, as to produce a very soft uniform appear- 

 ance. Even the tubercular dots appear wanting, 

 though really they are present and even black in 

 colour, but then they are so minute as not to be 

 noticed without a lens. 



When the larva is full-fed it bends down a leaf of 

 the reed, or fastens two or more leaves together, and 



